No Difference: Epilogue

[attackfish]

This is in response to a challenge up at thematic_hp

Disclaimer: Do I have to say it? I'm not making any money off this, because I own none of it.

Prompt: #17 (round 8) Through time travel, Harry is Snape's biological father. Severus really isn't happy to find that out. (Must be drama - not comedy.)
Summary: After Harry talks to Dumbledore in Deathly Hallows, he takes a little detour to Spinner’s End, back before it was Snape’s house, back when it belonged to a woman named Eileen Prince. Snape couldn’t be angrier.

Author's Note: I  wanted to thank everyone who read or reviewed this fic, especially lothy who posted the challenge on which this fic is based (and recced it, isn't that awesome?) ObsidianEmbrace who also recced my story, celadonserpent who acted as an unofficial beta for parts of it, and blue_underwing whose insights made reading my email much more fun.

When I started writing this, I thought it would be much shorter, about ten chapters.  had I known it would be this long when I started, I would have expanded the part at the beginning with Eileen and Harry.

I always intended to leave the relationship between Harry and Snape rocky, but I hope I brought it to some resolution.  I also intended that the fic fit with the canon epilogue, except that Albus Potter has a different middle name: Alastor, after Mad-Eye Moody.

 

 

Epilogue Six Years Later

The house numbers skipped from eleven to thirteen, but the inconsistency, so long entrenched in the neighborhood as to be another part of the street’s “character” went mostly ignored by the passersby.  A man appeared as if by magic out from behind a wall and his eyes passed from number eleven, to number thirteen as if he were expecting them to reorder themselves to suit convention.  He was a very forbidding man, this figure gazing at the houses, with his black clothes and long black hair severely pulled back from his angular face.  He was lean and short, but he gave the impression of looming over those much taller, and the few others out on the street in the blustering weather kept their distance.

Severus glared steadily at the space between number eleven and number thirteen until it obligingly resolved itself into Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.  The grimy unkempt Victorian brick buildings around only made the scrubbed and painted number twelve seem brighter and fresher by comparison.  The soot and slime that had been collecting on the brickwork for over a hundred years had disappeared, washed and pounded away.  He wrinkled his nose as he rapped his fist against the black painted wood door, ignoring the sun faced brass door knocker entirely.

The door opened noiselessly upon Harry Potter and a small turquoise headed boy.  “I still can’t comprehend why you required my presence,” he hissed tiredly as Potter waved him inside.

Harry turned to him and sighed.  “He’s your brother, and he’s six months old, and it’s about time you met him.”  He led him down a window lined corridor.  The whispering portraits no longer covered up the windows, and the curtains had been pushed aside to let in the light.  In place of Mrs. Black’s portrait hung a painting of birds in a fruit tree.  Everything smelled of clean linen and milk.

Potter turned his head as if he wanted to say something, but before he did, he noticed Severus’ small colorful shadow, imitating his stalk, complete with the way his arms moved and his head tilted, all exaggerated in the movements of the seven year old, whose face, moment by moment had taken on Severus’ features.  “How many times has your gran told you not to imitate people?” Potter asked him.  “You know better.”

“But-”

“You can’t follow someone around if you’re just going to be rude.”

Potter’s badly hidden smile softened his scolding, but the boy ignored it.  “Awwwwww,” he huffed, his hair becoming a bright banana yellow before fading to dark grey, and he sulked off, the Persian rugs muffling his footfalls and frustrating his attempts to properly stomp.

“Teddy’s visiting for the week,” Potter explained before continuing down the hall.  As they passed the drawing room, Severus noticed that the Black family tree had disappeared and a tapestry of an Art Nouveau fox reaching for grapes on a vine.

Harry led him up the stairs to the topmost landing and pushed one of the two doors open as quietly as he could and ushered Snape inside.  The Gryffindor banners and photographs no longer littered the walls.  He and Ginny had pulled them down and packed them away for James to see when he was older if he chose.  Even the Muggle pinup girls had been saved because Harry couldn’t bear to throw away anything of Sirius’.  They had polished the chandelier, chipped away the wax, and replaced the candles, painted the walls a soft yellow, and hung the tall window with baby blue drapes.  An oak crib stood next to a changing table against one wall, lined with blue bedding, and next to the window sat a plush rocking chair where Ginny, a bump just beginning to show through her blouse, slept in the sunlight.  She had done that the first time she’d been pregnant as well, taken naps all the time and then not slept at all at night.  Harry smiled and put a finger to his lips.

Ginny slept, but James did not.  He peered up at his father as Harry lifted him from the crib and rocked him gently.  “He’s starting to sit up on his own,” he told Snape proudly, kissing the baby’s cheek and tickling his belly.  The baby’s soft coo turned to laughter and the laughter turned to joyful shrieking before his father stopped.

Ginny opened one eye, turned over, and slipped back off to sleep, one hand resting protectively over her belly.  With her other hand, she squeezed Harry’s arm gently, sleepily.

Severus winced and replied sarcastically, “Fascinating.”

Harry shot him an exasperated look.  “He’s your brother,” he reminded Snape as he held James out to him.  “Take him.”

Severus took him awkwardly and held him against his chest.  At first the baby looked back to his father almost reproachfully, but then he looked up at Severus and turned to his chest, fisting his hands in Severus’ robes.

The eyes that gazed curiously up at him were hazel, but the tuft of hair brushing against his robes was too dark to be Weasley red.  It was the same dark red color as Lily Evens’, and that was enough to make a difference.



“Does it make a difference, being Muggle-born?”

Snape hesitated.  His black eyes eager in the greenish gloom, moved over the pale face, the dark red hair.

“No,” he said.  “It doesn’t make any difference.


The End

There are two short story addendums to No Difference called "Literary Minds" and "Fairytale Princess"

 

 

Comments

[lothy.livejournal.com]

That's a really lovely way to end the story. It hadn't accured to me that in this AU James & Albus would be Severus' brothers! Yes, I like this.

Thanks for writing such a great story... the only possible downside is that I no longer have any great updates to look forward to!

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

Lol, I'm going to be writing a short story set in this universe with a thirteen year old Albus Potter, Snape, and Draco Malfoy, and I guess that rams the point home a bit more.

Well, there's always the short story, and then I'm starting another chapterfic soon, if that eases the blow.

Thank you so much!

[lothy.livejournal.com]

The short story sounds interesting, I'll look forward to that :)

What's the chaptered fic going to be about?

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

Poor Snape...

If Lupin bit Snape in the Shrieking Shack when they were fifteen.

[blue-underwing.livejournal.com]

:) :) :) :) :) \o/ \o/ \o/

I hadn't expected the last caperture for another week, and only is it here, but you also post the epilogue, you wonderful author you. :)

This is a great story. I've loved reading you character interaction throughout, even when I wanted to bang their heads together. Also I'm glad to see you weren't too off put by me cluttering your inbox ^_^

Can't wait for that short story, and the werewolf chapter fic you you mentioned sounds quite interesting too.

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

It feels so nice to be appreciated! I'll tell you a secret, I've had the epilogue written since chapter five. As I said, my preferred method of writing involves throwing two or more characters and let them tangle.Banging heads together sounds a lot like a good idea about halfway into the process for me too.

I'm glad you're looking forward to them. Updates will be less frequent because I'm working on my original fiction novel.

No Difference

[dramagirl007.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you updated this wonderful story and so quick. I'm sad that it has finally came to an end. I'm happy you're going to have another story in this universe. I didn't really understand the italic part at the very end, could you explain it to me? And did Snape finally accept Harry as his father and did they keep in contact and bond some more during those six years? So many questions left un answered, I hope you answer some of my questions. I loved this story and I wish it would have never ended. Keep up the good work and I hope you post the new story soon. :)

Re: No Difference

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

The text in italics at the end is an excerpt from book seven, "The Prince's Tale", and it's a conversation between Lily and Snape before they start at Hogwarts.

Snape and Harry didn't bond in the intervening six years, but they did keep in contact and their relationship became less tense. I do get into that by implication in the short story. Suffice it to say that James, Albus, and Lily are willing to see Snape as a brother, and Harry and Snape regard each other as family, but they aren't quite able to put a name on the relationship.

I'm glad you liked this story!

Re: No Difference

[dramagirl007.livejournal.com]

Thank you for explaining that for me. I forgot about The Prince's Tale in the book, it's been a while since I read it and I kind of stopped paying attention to the book after Snape and Fred died. I can't wait for the next story. :)

Re: No Difference

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

The thing about writing fanfic is that one gets to know the canon really well, because one is always digging through it to find whatever minute detail one is using at that moment. That chapter really stuck in my mind, and I had to use it. I was so angry that Snape died, because JKR could have hinted about so much more with his life and the way the Wizarding World treated him after the war.

Re: No Difference

[dramagirl007.livejournal.com]

Yah I know what you mean about writing fanfic, I write fanfic as well but on a different site and with a different pen name, I am currently looking through the seventh book to help me along with my fanfic but I'm not at the end of it yet. :)

Re: No Difference

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

I just wish the guy who ran HP lexicon weren't such an idiot, because that was a great site, prevented a lot of rereading.

Re: No Difference

[dramagirl007.livejournal.com]

Yah, I know, but it is still up there. I still use it to help me along if I feel too lazy to look through the books.

Re: No Difference

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

Yay! it was down for a while.

[dragondolphin.livejournal.com]

Sorry it took me so long to read this. Life has been really busy lately. The story is really good. I love a quote-unquote "nice" Severus, but I also like cannon Severus. I think you mixed the two really well. The story seemed almost real at times. Some of your descriptions are great.
When next I have free time, I will definitely come back to read everything else you have posted. : )

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I really wanted to keep everyone as close as possible to their canon personalities. I hope I can keep that "almost real" feeling while writing my original novel. Beware though, I have a new chapterfic going, so the longer it takes you to read everything, the more there will be to read.

[dragondolphin.livejournal.com]

I don't often reread fanfictions. They're always way worse than I remember. Well, not always. Because this one is still freaking amazing. Attackfish, you are awesome, you know that? Three and a half years later, and this is still one of my most favorite fanfictions ever. Everything is just so good. It's fun to read, and the characters are awesome, and everything is wonderful.

I keep telling myself I should watch Avatar, just so I can read more of your stuff.

[attackfish.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I actually went through and reread this a few months ago, because it's my first and I have a lot more practice now, and I came to the conclusion that it wasn't as bad as I had assumed.

You should, if for no other reason then that it's a fantastic show. You can get all three seasons instantly on Netflix if you have an account.

[dragondolphin.livejournal.com]

Most of the mistakes come from skipping letters (like typing "he" instead of "the"). The actual storytelling is really well done.

I do have Netflix. It's actually been on my queue for a long time now, but other shows and movies keep getting in the way.